Huawei MateBook 14 2024 unboxing

It's easy to get caught up in the idea that a good, premium portable laptop is either made by Apple, Lenovo, Microsoft, or Asus. But Huawei has always been there and its line of 14-inch MateBooks is ever-evolving and always competitive.

This is the MateBook 14 (2024), and it's a solid successor to the 2023 model - moving from a 300-nit IPS LCD to a 450-nit OLED panel, from an i7-1360P CPU to a more powerful Core 7 Ultra 155H, a bigger 70Wh battery (vs 56Wh on the last model), and slimming down to just 1.31kg. It's also the first stylus-compatible MateBook.

The laptop ships with a 65W charger with a built-in USB-C cable, and you can spec the machine with an Ultra 5 with 16GB of RAM and either a 512GB SSD or a 1TB SSD, a Core Ultra 5 with 32GB of RAM and 1TB SSD, or with a Core Ultra 7 with 32GB of RAM and 1TB SSD.

The highlight here is the 14.2-inch 2880x1920px OLED panel. It's in Huawei's usual 3:2 aspect, ramps up to 450 nits, and supports 100% of the sRGB and DCI-P3 gamut, and 95% of the Adobe RGB one.

The panel is a visual standout. Moving from an LCD to an OLED is always a transformative experience. You get lovely wide viewing angles, deep contrast, and lively colors.

The machine is well-built, as we've come to expect from Huawei. It's made of smooth metal, and ours comes in Green - your other choice is dull grey.

The keyboard is very comfortable with excellent spacing and superb travel. Our only early complaint about the build is that the trackpad is on the small side and feels a bit mushy.

You get three USBs - a USB-C for charging on the left, next to it a USB-A and HDMI, and another USB-A on the other side. There's no Thunderbolt, which is a real shame.

The ports